Lateral Ministries: Following Jesus Beside You

An average family walks into a church of Christ auditorium on any given Sunday and finds a seat. Mama and the kids scoot into the row, and Daddy sits at the end by the aisle. They look around at all the unfamiliar faces and shift in their seats.  A young mother seeking the Lord comes to church with her two children: a four-year-old boy and a two-and-a-half-year-old girl. She twists, wrestles, and corrects, trying to keep quiet, wondering if she’s causing a distraction or if others are irritated by the children and her.  A family comes to a typical church of Christ from another background. Used to a very different approach, they don’t understand our shared convictions about worship and may feel disoriented. We don’t want them to feel out of place. If they feel out of place, they’re almost sure to be out of the place permanently.  Another person Jesus died for comes from no religious upbringing at all and has already overcome severe anxiety before walking into a church buil...

Deuteronomy 33:27 says, “The eternal God is your dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. And he thrust out the enemy before you and said, ‘Destroy’” (ESV). The International Children’s Bible words it this way: “The everlasting God is your place of safety. His arms will hold you up forever. He will force your enemy out ahead of you. He will say, ‘Destroy the enemy!’” These are comforting words to spiritual warriors. King Jesus has defeated the enemy and exposed him to open shame. He has triumphed over death, freeing us from it. Nothing and no one can defeat our King! Not even the church’s failures can keep Jesus from accomplishing all the aims of His reign. He will return and judge the whole world. We’re free to fight fearlessly. We will be victorious in the end. But we can delay the victory. The church has a mission to fulfill, and no Bible passage states it so completely and succinctly as Matthew 28:19–20:  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing...

2 Corinthians 10:1–6 is a super important New Testament passage in which the apostle Paul teaches about spiritual warfare, especially its ultimate aim. I, Paul, myself entreat you, by the meekness and gentleness of Christ—I who am humble when face to face with you, but bold toward you when I am away!—I beg of you that when I am present I may not have to show boldness with such confidence as I count on showing against some who suspect us of walking according to the flesh. For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete. (ESV) The Holy Spirit teaches us four truths in this great text: 1. Spiritual warfare is "not according to the flesh," which means it...

The concept of fasting and the principles that guide it are introduced in the Old Testament. From the beginning until now, the basic definition of fasting has remained: refraining from some or all foods and, sometimes, for very limited durations, refraining from drinks as well. Jesus made it clear He expects His followers to fast (Matthew, 9:15; Mark 2:20; Luke 5:35). His example is our inspiration, but remember He was likely miraculously sustained through His 40-day fast in the wilderness, which was to fulfill prophetic types from the Old Testament that confirmed His Messiahship. No biblical author suggests His 40-day fast is normative or that any other figure in the New Testament ever voluntarily fasted for that long. Fasting for that long can cause major damage to your health or even death. No one should ever fast from drinking water for more than a couple of days at a time, if at all. The body cannot survive a total fast from water for much longer than three days. Fasting from othe...